1632Dauphin My lord of Orléans, and my lord high 1633constable, you talk of horse and armor?

1634Orléans You are as well provided of both as any 1635prince in the world.

1636Dauphin What a long night is this! I will not change 1637my horse with any that treads but on four pasterns. 1638Ch'ha! He bounds from the earth as if his entrails were 1639hairs: le cheval volant, the Pegasus, qui a les narines de 1640feu! When I bestride him, I soar; I am a hawk. He trots 1641the air. The earth sings when he touches it. The basest horn 1642of his hoof is more musical than the pipe of 1643Hermes.

1645Dauphin And of the heat of the ginger. It is a beast 1646for Perseus. He is pure air and fire, and the dull 1647elements of earth and water never appear in him but 1648only in patient stillness while his rider mounts him. He 1649is indeed a horse, and all other jades you may call 1650beasts.

1651Constable Indeed, my lord, it is a most absolute and 1652excellent horse.

1653Dauphin It is the prince of palfreys. His neigh is like 1654the bidding of a monarch, and his countenance enforces 1655homage.

1657Dauphin Nay, the man hath no wit that cannot from 1658the rising of the lark to the lodging of the lamb 1659vary deserved praise on my palfrey; it is a theme as 1660fluent as the sea. Turn the sands into eloquent tongues 1661and my horse is argument for them all. 'Tis a subject 1662for a sovereign to reason on, and for a sovereign's 1663sovereign to ride on, and for the world, familiar to us 1664and unknown, to lay apart their particular functions 1665and wonder at him. I once writ a sonnet in his praise, 1666and began thus: "Wonder of nature --"

1757Constable A valiant and most expert gentleman. Would 1758it were day! Alas, poor Harry of England. He longs 1759not for the dawning as we do.

1760Orléans What a wretched and peevish fellow is this 1761king of England, to mope with his fat-brained followers 1762so far out of his knowledge!

1763Constable If the English had any apprehension, they 1764would run away.

1765Orléans That they lack, for if their heads had any 1766intellectual armor, they could never wear such heavy 1767headpieces.

1768Rambures That island of England breeds very valiant 1769creatures. Their mastiffs are of unmatchable 1770courage.

1771Orléans Foolish curs, that run winking into 1772the mouth of a Russian bear and have their heads crushed 1773like rotten apples. You may as well say that's a valiant 1774flea that dare eat his breakfast on the lip of a 1775lion.

1776Constable Just, just. And the men do sympathize with 1777the mastiffs in robustious and rough coming on, 1778leaving their wits with their wives. And then give 1779them great meals of beef, and iron and steel; they 1780will eat like wolves and fight like devils.